Notre Dame did not quite have a bye week before its scheduled week off, but the Tar Heels presented such a little challenge, one can be forgiven for making that mistake. Even without junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush, the No. 21 Irish (5-1) never trailed in a 33-10 victory at North Carolina (1-5) on Saturday, outgaining the Tar Heels 487 yards to 265. As Wimbush spent the week on the sidelines due to a strained right foot, sophomore quarterback Ian Book got his first career start.

“All in all, to go on the road and win by 20-plus points for a third time this year, I’m really pleased with our guys in terms of their mental preparation and how they go on the road and attack this,” Irish coach Brian Kelly said. “It is hard to do, really hard to do, and I’m proud of them.”

Through a quarter, North Carolina played Book and Notre Dame even in one regard and only one regard: the score. The Irish had 146 total yards to the Tar Heels’ seven. Notre Dame had rushed for 57 yards, while North Carolina lost eight on the ground. Book completed eight of his 11 passes in the opening frame. One of the two teams had the ball for 11:37 of the quarter — go ahead and guess which — yet the contest remained scoreless.

Book changed that on the first play of the second quarter, connecting with fifth-year senior receiver Cam Smith from six yards for Book’s first career touchdown and Smith’s first at Notre Dame. After a quick Tar Heels three-and-out, Irish junior running back Josh Adams romped 73 yards to give the Irish enough scoring they could have stopped then. Adams finished with 118 yards on only 13 carries, again seeing only abbreviated time due to both a lopsided score and his own wear-and-tear.

PLAY OF THE GAME
Let’s give that nod to Adams’ long touchdown run. It has become something of a weekly feature. In this instance, the left side of Notre Dame’s offensive line opened up quite a hole, the workhorse shed one tackler, and it was off to the races.

HONORABLE MENTION PLAY OF THE GAME
On the third quarter’s third play, North Carolina quarterback Chazz Surratt dropped back from his own 21-yard line, looking for a quick route to convert a third-and-four. He thought he saw an option.

Instead, Irish sophomore defensive end Julian Okwara batted the pass into the air with his right hand, located it above his head and pulled in the interception. Since Surratt made a tackle after a five-yard return to prevent a touchdown, Okwara’s first career interception may not make every highlight reel, but the athleticism displayed deserves that showcasing. (See the 1:00 minute mark of this video.)

TURNING POINT OF THE GAME
If the Tar Heels had simply lined up Surratt directly behind his center and plunged forward just before halftime, they could have gotten the ball to start the second half down a mere touchdown. Instead, North Carolina attempted a long pass out of the shotgun. Notre Dame sophomore safety Jalen Elliott could not track down Surratt’s overthrown pass. Tar Heels disaster seemingly averted. North Carolina coach Larry Fedora had other plans in mind.

On second down, they lined up in shotgun again. This time, they opted to try a running play. Perhaps the Tar Heels offensive line was unaware time remained on the clock, because it hardly tried to block Irish junior defensive tackle Jerry Tillery or senior defensive end Jay Hayes. The two wrapped up running back Jordon Brown in the end zone with no doubt whatsoever he had returned to the goal line.

“We threw the ball down the field,” Fedora said. “We thought we could get a double move on the guy and we didn’t.

“Then what I wanted to do was get out of the half without any problems. We were going to run a basic zone play and we turned some guys loose and they hit us in the backfield.”

It may have been a terrible play call, but the North Carolina offensive line also should have blocked better. The two-point safety returned Notre Dame’s lead to two possessions.

If that did not deflate the Tar Heels entirely, Okwara taking away the ball to start the second half certainly did.

OVERLOOKED POINT OF THE GAME
The Irish began a late first-quarter drive at their own 20-yard line. Seven plays in, they had advanced to just past midfield, facing a fourth-and-one. A drive earlier, in the exact same situation, a Book quarterback sneak did not come near gaining the needed yardage, yet Kelly doubled down on the fourth-down attempts, going for it again.

Book completed a crossing route to Notre Dame junior tight end Alizé Mack. With the yards Mack gained after the initial catch, the 13 yards not only notched the first down but also pushed the Irish that much further into North Carolina territory.

It took another seven plays for Book to connect with Smith for the afternoon’s first score. By then the fourth-down conversion was already just a piece of a long drive. It was that call, though, that kept the drive alive.

More than reflecting an aggressive philosophy in agreement with analytics, the two early fourth-down attempts showed a lack of respect for the Tar Heels offense. Frankly speaking, that dismissiveness was warranted, considering North Carolina gained an average of 3.8 yards per play.

“The sense that I got was that we were going to be stingy defensively today and I am very confident in our offense,” Kelly said.

PLAYER OF THE GAME
Rather than a player, how about a unit? How about a position group long-expected to be a debilitating weakness in 2017 but has instead become a spot of distinct strength? How about the Notre Dame defensive line?

Okwara’s interception and the Tillery/Hayes safety were but the most notable highlights. Sophomore defensive end Daelin Hayes (no relation) also recorded a sack and two quarterback hurries. Tillery added two more quarterback hurries and Jay Hayes pressured Surratt once more, as well.

The Irish defensive front controlled the point of attack all afternoon. A month ago, predicting that would have elicited only laughter. Now, it is a reality and one that sets up the entire Notre Dame defense for continued success.

STAT OF THE GAME
The Irish entered the weekend having converted all 22 of their trips into the red zone this season, 20 of those for touchdowns. Book’s pass to Smith continued that streak. A third-quarter field goal from junior kicker Justin Yoon pushed it to 24, though diluting the seven-point percentage.

Book ended the run with an interception from the 18-yard line in the third quarter. The Irish did not return to the red zone after that.

Without Wimbush’s rushing, converting in the red zone became a bit more difficult. In the season’s first five games, seven of those 20 touchdowns had been Wimbush rushes. As suitable as Book appeared in the passing game and as well as he managed the offense overall, losing that dynamic playmaking in the close quarters of the red zone was a noticeable drop-off between him and Wimbush.

This is not to diminish the losses of receiver Miles Boykin and consensus first-team All-American cornerback Julian Love. Notre Dame will miss both of them, Love in particular. But looking at the Irish depth chart, there are avenues to survival without both.

Notre Dame will return two starting receivers in rising senior Chase Claypool and fifth-year-to-be Chris Finke (speaking of which, see below). A number of options exist to replace Love, though obviously none will match his shutdown abilities. Either rising sophomore TaRiq Bracy will put on the necessary muscle to compete with receivers at this level or rising senior Donte Vaughn will return reinvigorated with health after recent surgery to repair a torn labrum surgery or rising sophomore Houston Griffith will move from safety to get his talent on the field or fifth-year Shaun Crawford will recover from an ACL tear quicker than expected or … or … or … If one of those pans out, the Irish defense should be comfortable in its coverage, buoyed by the stalwart safety combination of Alohi Gilman and Jalen Elliott. (Imagine sincerely saying “stalwart safety combination” just six months ago.)

Look again at the depth chart, and such luxuries do not exist at defensive end. If rising seniors Khalid Kareem and Julian Okwara had not opted to return, Notre Dame’s 2019 dreams would have hit a lowered ceiling nine months before the season began. By no means were they certain high-round draft picks, but the allure of athletic and talented defensive ends may have easily led to some outsized draft hopes.

Their backups are certainly more than capable — rising seniors Daelin Hayes and Ade Ogundeji — but a talented second-unit is as important at defensive end as dangerous starters are. To replace the latter with the former is to diminish the entire enterprise outright.

The Irish could not have recovered from losing both Kareem and Okwara, at least not to the extent where Playoff talk would be viable again. Lose one and it would have still been dubious, at best.

Take a look at the teams expected to be in the mix for the Playoff. Using current championship odds … Clemson at 2-to-1, Alabama at just less than 3-to-1, Georgia at 6-to-1, Ohio State at 8-to-1, Michigan at 16-to-1 and then Oklahoma also at 16-to-1. Those first five have been known for their defenses more than anything else in recent years. Bookmakers put some faith in their ability to reload on the fly.

Notre Dame has not earned that trust, and its roster does not indicate it should have. As well as Justin Ademilola performed as a freshman in four games, inserting him into a pivotal role in 2019 would likely be a recipe for a mediocre season. He is another year of development away from being ready for that role, barring a Matt Balis-induced excellent offseason.

The Irish will need Kareem and Okwara to survive the losses of defensive tackles Jerry Tillery and Jonathan Bonner, but if they play as they did in 2018, that is a reasonable ask. If they continue to develop, it becomes a probability more than a Notre Dame leap of faith.

The Irish will miss Boykin’s back-shoulder reliability and everything about Love, but Brian Kelly and his coaching staff coaxed back the two most-pivotal pieces from NFL draft consideration.

Speaking of Finke, he confirmed his intent to return for his final year of eligibility Thursday evening. And he did it in a way only befitting a man comfortable in his own skin.

With the Wednesday announcement of current junior linebacker D.J. Morgan’s intention to transfer this summer as a graduate with two years of eligibility remaining, Notre Dame’s roster drops to 87 scholarship players expected this coming fall. Included among them, at least 12, possibly 14 linebackers. Before explaining that …

Morgan finishes his Irish career with two tackles in two 2017 appearances as a safety. He moved to linebacker during 2018’s spring practices, but never came particularly close to playing time. It remained difficult to see him cracking into the rotation moving forward given the quality of recruiting classes at the position in the last two cycles.

“I would like to thank the University of Notre Dame for everything they have done for me,” Morgan wrote on Twitter. “When I decided to come here, my main goal was to get my degree from this prestigious University, and I am proud to see that I will be completing that goal this summer!

“During this time I will be searching for a new school to attend as a graduate transfer to finish off my last 2 years of eligibility.”

(@deundraymorgan)

Before facing Louisville on Labor Day, the Irish will need to be down to 85 scholarship players. At 87 now, that does not include incoming freshman J.D. Bertrand, who had a recruitment handled in a deliberate fashion so as to make him eligible for an academic scholarship. Notre Dame also continues to chase two defenders — consensus four-star linebacker Asa Turner and consensus four-star defensive end Isaiah Foskey — who could balloon the roster count further.

Lacey will need to be ready for at least four games next season, especially with three of these six returning from injury: Tagovailoa-Amosa with a broken foot, though he did at least take some snaps against Clemson; Franklin from a torn quad that will limit him through the spring; and Spears from a torn ACL that could conceivably cost him 2019.

Former Notre Dame quarterback Brandon Wimbush will continue his career at Central Florida. Wimbush announced his graduate transfer destination Tuesday morning.

“The journey continues on …,” Wimbush wrote on Instagram. “A sincere thank you to Notre Dame for giving me endless opportunities on and off the field. Words truly can not (sic) describe what this incredible University and the PEOPLE mean to me and always will mean to me. I’m truly thankful. Cannot say it enough.

“With that being said, I am excited to announce that UCF has granted me an awesome opportunity to play my last year of collegiate football for their great University.”

Wimbush will enter into a starting opportunity, although an unfortunate one and a competitive one. The late November horrendous knee injury to three-year starter McKenzie Milton will almost-assuredly sideline him through the 2019 season. If not for the injury, Milton would either be starting 2019 for the Knights or headed to the NFL.

In his first year of any action, sophomore Darriel Mack played in 10 games for Central Florida, completing 51 of his 100 pass attempts for 619 yards and three touchdowns, including going 35-of-71 for 526 yards and three scores in the two-plus games Milton missed.

Wimbush finishes his Irish career with a 13-3 record as a starter, including four wins during 2018’s unbeaten regular season. After the Notre Dame offense failed to break 24 points in the first three games of the season, offensive coordinator Chip Long turned to Ian Book for a spark, one Book provided and then some.

Wimbush’s role became non-existent after that, aside from a Senior Day start in place of an injured Book, throwing for 130 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for 68 yards.

Mustipher and Co. will now have reason to keep an eye on the Knights in 2019. After going 25-1 in the last two seasons, Central Florida will want to keep the momentum rolling, particularly with Stanford arriving in Orlando on Sept. 14, a week before the Knights head to Pittsburgh. The Knights genuinely entering the College Football Playoff conversation remains unlikely, but topping those two before rolling through the American Athletic Conference would at least start the discussion, especially if a former Irish quarterback headlines the way.

Named 2018’s Next Man In, Wimbush finishes his Irish career with 2,606 yards on 193-of-382 passing with 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions along with 1,155 rushing yards and 16 additional touchdowns.

AS FOR NOTRE DAME’S QB IN 2019 …Early Heisman odds came from an online sportsbook Tuesday, betonline.ag. Irish rising senior Ian Book was given 16-to-1 odds, tied for ninth on the listing. Given the names ahead of him, Book’s realistic chances of winning the Heisman Trophy are slim. Only Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence and Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa have odds lower than 12-to-1, at 7-to-2 and 4-to-1, respectively.

Then come two Notre Dame opponents — Georgia running back D’Andre Swift and quarterback Jake Fromm, both at 12-to-1. Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson checks in at 25-to-1, just ahead of Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello at 33-to-1.

If nothing else, Book can count on some early-season hype if the Irish top Swift and Fromm on Sept. 21.

Dabo Swinney paid tribute to the late Tyler Trent in his speech while Clemson visited the White House 🙏

A sign of a strong program is one that loses players to the NFL before they exhaust eligibility. In that vein, Notre Dame lost a consensus first-team All-American cornerback, its leading receiver and a long-time tease of a tight end. The last of those (Alizé Mack) was never expected back for a fifth season; replacing Miles Boykin’s production is certainly within reason; and a consensus first-team All-American should be expected to take the route junior Julian Love has.

Even with that expectation, losing Love — and to a lesser extent, Boykin — alters the natural roster cycle, the inherent design intended during recruiting. Reloading is always the hope, the next intention, but very rarely is the young backup comparable to the near professional, even by the end of the coming season.

Nonetheless, the Irish got off easy this cycle compared to four of their 2019 opponents …

GEORGIA: Junior running back Elijah Holyfield, the Bulldogs’ second-leading rusher, departs after gaining 1,018 rushing yards with seven touchdowns on 6.4 yards per carry this season. Frankly, that is the least of Georgia’s losses. Three of quarterback Jake Fromm’s four favorite targets will leave eligibility on the figurative table:

Without running back Karan Higdon, Michigan will presumably rely on its passing game more in 2019, quarterback Shea Patterson’s second season as a Wolverine. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

MICHIGAN: The Wolverines got good news when quarterback Shea Patterson opted to return for 2019, but losing leading-rusher Karan Higdon (1,178 yards, 10 touchdowns, 5.3 average) will be an issue head coach Jim Harbaugh undoubtedly hoped to avoid. Junior tight end Zach Gentry, Patterson’s third-most prolific target with 32 catches for 514 yards and two scores, will also head to the next level.

On the flip side, Harbaugh could have hoped linebacker Devin Bush (team-leading 80 tackles with 9.5 for loss including five sacks), defensive end Rashan Gary (44 tackles with seven for loss including 3.5 sacks) or linebacker David Long (17 tackles with one interception) might return, but no such luck for Michigan.

Duke junior quarterback Daniel Jones will head to the NFL after his third season as a starter, immediately lowering the Blue Devils’ 2019 expectations. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)

DUKE: Junior linebacker Joe Giles-Harris paced the Blue Devils with 81 tackles, including seven for loss with one sack, doing so in only nine games. But losing Giles-Harris is hardly the concern for Duke. The decision to turn pro from quarterback Daniel Jones is.

In his third year as a starter, the junior fought through a broken collarbone to still play in 11 games in 2018, completing 60.5 percent of his passes for 2,674 yards and 22 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He added 319 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

Jones’ decision may come as a surprise, but it is one that should work out well for both him and Notre Dame. Some mock drafts project him as a top-10 pick. In a draft light on quarterbacks — partly because Oregon’s Justin Herbert returned for another season, yet already somewhat counteracted by the Monday draft entry from Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray — Jones could end up being the third or fourth passer picked.

BOSTON COLLEGE: The Eagles will say farewell to junior cornerback Hemp Cheevers after he notched seven interceptions this season, returning one for a touchdown, to go along with 39 tackles.

STANFORD: This will seem like the Cardinal lost a lot to the NFL draft, but it could have been worse: As the departures mounted, so did speculation junior quarterback K.J. Costello might follow them. He opted not to.

Stanford will be without running back Bryce Love after his prodigious two seasons as the starter. Consider that a loss akin to the Irish Love, the inevitable price of enjoying the success in the first place.

Junior receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside will capitalize on his breakout season of 1,059 yards and 14 touchdowns, depriving Costello of his favorite jump-ball threat.

Junior tight end Kaden Smith will also head to the next level, in large part thanks to his 47 catches for 635 yards and two touchdowns this past season.

Louisville, New Mexico, Virginia, Bowling Green, USC, Virginia Tech and Navy all did not lose anyone early or pseudo-early to the NFL draft.